Ronald Moskowitz, education specialist, dies

Chronicle Staff Report

Published 4:38 pm, Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Ronald D. Moskowitz, a nationally known education reporter who served as a staff specialist in the administration of Gov. Edmund G. "Pat" Brown, died Oct. 31 in San Francisco. He had celebrated his 80th birthday only a week earlier.

Born in Galveston, Texas, Mr. Moskowitz had always intended to be a journalist, and after attending the University of Texas at Austin he took his first job in 1957 as a general assignment reporter at the Houston Post.

The newspaper's publisher, Oveta Culp Hobby, was impressed with his work and soon named him the paper's first education reporter.

In 1961, Mr. Moskowitz was hired by the San Francisco Examiner, then the city's largest newspaper, where he also reported on education.

Three years later, Brown invited him to join his team as staff secretary on education matters. Brown lost his bid for a third term as governor to Ronald Reagan in 1966, but before he left office, he asked Mr. Moskowitz to help develop a national organization to be called the Education Commission of the States. The organization tries to improve public education systems in states, from prekindergarten through college.

Mr. Moskowitz returned to journalism in 1971, joining The Chronicle as its education reporter.

Latest from the SFGATE homepage:

Click below for the top news from around the Bay Area and beyond. Sign up for our newsletters to be the first to learn about breaking news and more. Go to 'Sign In' and 'Manage Profile' at the top of the page.